You Were Dead
by MegElizabeth
Summary: Vaughn managed to save Sydney somehow...but he could not save himself...
1. Default Chapter

What if Vaughn had been the one who woke up to find he had missed two years? 

  
  


Sark held Allison's head on his lap, and wept, maybe the first time in his life; at least that he could remember. Sydney laid by a window that was remarkably not broken. Everything else in the apartment that was composed of glass had been shattered; the pieces were strewn all over the floor. He wasn't sure what the next step was...that had never happened before. Allison was dead, he knew that, though he was not sure how long it would be until he accepted it. He carefully laid her head to rest on the ground, first wiping away any glass that was beneath her body. He looked up to where Sydney laid and quickly moved to her, checking her wrist for a pulse. When he detected a beat, he sighed in relief, though he wasn't sure why. Obviously Sydney had killed Allison; the first woman he had ever loved. However, he could not fault Sydney for murdering her; it had obviously been in self-defense. He cradled Sydney's head in his arms, astounded at her beauty even in deep sleep. He assessed her injuries, gaping at the open wounds that covered the parts of her body that were visible to his eyes. He couldn't even imagine what lied beneath her suit or her skin.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of grinding glass. He looked up to be met with the angry of eyes of Michael Vaughn. 

"Put her down, and step away from her," Vaughn hissed, and when Sark hesitated, he spoke again forcefully, "_Now_."

Vaughn took his eyes off Sark momentarily to look at Sydney. She was hurt terribly and also out cold. He needed to get to her, but stopped when he recalled that he had called for backup. Officers would be here soon to get her to the hospital. In the meantime, he had to deal with Sark, whose hands were now raised in the air. It was his first priority...his _job_, to capture the villain who stood before him.

"Hello again Mr. Vaughn, long time no see," Sark smirked, recalling the last time they had met. Sark had shot at him, though luckily Vaughn had been wearing a bullet-proof vest.

"Shut up Sark. What have you done to Sydney...to Francie?"

"Ah, Mr. Vaughn, always jumping to conclusions, I must say I'm not surprised," 

At this quip, Vaughn lunged at Sark, grabbing him by the neck and held his pistol to his head. Vaughn looked at him squarely in the eyes, challenging him.

"Give me one reason to kill you Sark...I'll do it. You have done nothing but hurt Sydney over and over again," he spat out, eyes wild.

"Emotional attachments die hard, I see," Sark spoke, blue eyes meeting green.

"Shut up. Tell me what happened," Vaughn demanded. Sark hesitated. There was no reason to withhold the truth from the agent; he would find out from Sydney soon enough. 

"That woman," he said pointing to Allison's body, "was not Francie Calfo. That woman was Allison Doran...she worked for Arvin Sloane."

Vaughn would have laughed out loud if he was not so shocked. The irony of it all was astounding. Of_ course_ the double was Sydney's best friend. He shuttered...Sydney had been living, probably for months, with the enemy.

"You bastard," he spoke venomously to Sark.

"I just got here at the tail end of their fight. Allison is dead..."

"And Sydney?" Vaughn asked in anticipation. Sark hesitated, then smiled slightly.

"She's alive," he said, looking over to where she laid.

At this moment, Weiss stepped into the apartment, gazing at the destroyed surroundings, his eyes falling on a now stirring Sydney.

"My God," he whispered, looking into Vaughn's eyes.

"I know," Vaughn answered, eyes threatening to fill with tears. Sark decided to take advantage of this emotional moment. He broke free of Vaughn's grasp, punching him in the stomach. Before Weiss had time to react, Sark retrieved the gun that remained in Sydney's hand and shot at both of them. They fell to the ground to protect themselves, both yelling in pain as their hands and faces were cut by glass. Sark turned on his heels and retreated from the apartment.

"Take care of her! I'm going after him!" Vaughn shouted to Weiss, ignoring the blood that fell from his hands. He grabbed his gun and ran after him. Once outside, he looked around for signs of the man, but found none. He sighed and turned back to the house.

"Hello Agent Vaughn. So nice to see you again," Arvin Sloane spoke, before Sark appeared again, his fist colliding with Vaughn's face; his last thought was of Sydney before his world became engulfed with darkness.


	2. Awake

  
  


Bright lights and loud noises invaded his incoherent consciousness as he struggled to identify his surroundings. He looked around, realizing that he was in a hospital room, most likely in a CIA hospital. His suspicions were answered when he noticed a confused Weiss sitting in a nearby chair. Their eyes locked, and Weiss gasped, pausing momentarily before he spoke.

"You're awake," he whispered, moving his chair closer to Vaughn's bed.

"Yeah. I have quite a headache too," he said. Weiss merely stared at him.

"Eric," Vaughn began, "What happened?" Weiss hesitated.

"You don't remember anything?"

"No. I have no idea how I got here," Vaughn stated, looking down at his folded hands.

Weiss sighed, rubbing his hands over his face. _How am I going to tell you this_, he thought, looking at his best friend with concern on his face. He knew he had to tell him the truth.

"Mike, we found you after you were apprehended by our branch in France. You were injured...burns, severe cuts...luckily someone recognized you, recognized you as William's son..." Vaughn shuttered at the reference to his father, "They called us, and here I am."

"Weiss...why would I turn myself in? I didn't do anything. The last things I remember is going after Sark that night that Sydney was hurt," Vaughn stated, looking at his friend. Weiss gasped, standing up quickly and turned his back to Vaughn. He placed a hand over his head, mind absorbing the words his friend had spoken. He breathed deeply, preparing himself to reveal information that was obviously new to Mike. He turned around slowly, face pale.

"What?" Vaughn asked, noting his friend's palor.

"Mike...that night with Sydney and Sark..." he trailed off, hesitant.

"What, Eric?" Vaughn demanded.

"That night...it was two years ago man," Weiss blurted, met immediately by Vaughn's shocked expression, "You were presumed dead. We looked for you...we searched everywhere, but you were dead. That was the only explanation...you were dead," Weiss whispered, remembering his own reaction to the news.

  


_*flashback*_

  


The office wasn't the same without Mike. Things were quiet, too quiet; and sterile. He hated every moment of it...and longed for the day when Mike would return. Things would return to normal - they could harass each other once again about women, missions and whose favorite hockey team would win the Stanley Cup. However, as the days went by, it seemed like word would ever come.

One day, however, changed all that. It had been five months since his disappearance - Five months that Sydney and himself had been searching relentlessly for any sign of Michael. On the last day of the fifth month, he received the news that he had been hoping for, but dreading. Sydney has sauntered in the office, though her confident prideful air was gone. She immediately went to Eric's desk, pulling him up wordlessly, hugging him to her tightly. Eric remembered stroking her hair, waiting for an explanation for her strange behavior. Moments later, it came.

"They found a body Eric," she spoke into his shoulder, then pulled away to look at him, tears filling her doe eyes. Eric could not speak. He had waited for this day, when they would receive any news...closure. This was not the type of closure he had hoped for. Tears began to fill his own eyes as he embraced Sydney again, her sobs drowning out his own.

  


*_end flashback_*

  


Weiss shook off the memory, meeting his friend's eyes once again. He was met with a green gaze filled with confusion and fury. Vaughn breathed deeply before speaking.

"Eric...where was I?" he asked hesitantly.

"We're not sure. We're looking into it. In the meantime, we're going to transport back to the LA office so we can check you out...possibly put you under hypnosis..."he trailed off.

"What Eric?" Weiss hesitated, not sure he wanted to reveal anything more. It had to be said though.

"I missed you Mike...I missed you," he said, tears threatening to fill his eyes. Vaughn looked away, no longer able to meet his friend's gaze.

"Just get me home Eric. Please just get me home," he whispered, before wordlessly laying down to sleep.

*****

  


He hated the looks he was receiving in the LA office. Everyone...Weiss, Marshall, Dixon, even Jack Bristow looked at him with pity...like they all knew something more...something else that would lead to the destruction of his life. As if it was not already completely demolished. When he asked them any questions...about his life, his absence or Sydney...they all looked at each other, ignoring him. He wanted to scream.

Five days had past since his reentry into society. He had been hypnotized, but they had discovered something. It was almost as if his brain refused to disclose any information from the past two years. He had no idea where he had been...truthfully he did not want to know, not just yet. He only desired once piece of information.

On the fifth day, Weiss, Dixon (who had taken Kendall's position) and Jack Bristow had gathered in his cell to speak to him. They wanted to know if he intended on continuing his career with the CIA.

"Well guys," he started, "this life is ultimately responsible for my disappearance, so excuse me if I'm not exactly jumping back into work," he yelled, eyes blazing.

"No one blames you man," Weiss said calmly, "We just want to know what you want."

Vaughn looked up at them, sighing loudly. This had been the first time in the past few days that they had asked him what _he_ wanted.

"The only thing I want to know...the thing you've all been avoiding - Where is Sydney? And before you interrupt me, I don't want any avoidance, any lies - I want the truth and I want it now," he paused momentarily, his demeanor becoming more demanding, "I mean, is she still alive, is she still with the agency, is she a professor, is she in league with Irina Derevko...just tell me something!"

The three men before him shared glances, only this time he saw truth in their eyes. Jack sighed loudly, before moving to sit next to Vaughn on his bed.

"Agent Vaughn," he began, "Sydney is still with the CIA..."

"Thank God, she's alive," Vaughn stated, resting his head against the wall in relief.

"However, she's currently on maternity leave," Jack finished, looking back to where Vaughn now was. Vaughn's eyes widened in shock.

"What?" he asked, immediately regretting his question.

He did not want to know anything else.


	3. Reunions

It took a few days, but here's the next installment! ENJOY!

  


Vaughn sighed loudly, his arms frozen at his sides. He remembered literally twisting Eric's arm to get her address, though he wasn't sure how he'd acquired the means to get here. He looked back toward the street. His car was not sitting there, so he assumed he must have taken a cab... or perhaps the bus. He shook his head. The mode of transportation did not matter; he was here standing on Sydney's doorstep. It seemed like only days had passed since the last time he had seen her, when in reality, it had been two years. He knew that Sydney was probably married. He had realized that as soon as Jack had told him she was pregnant. He knew this because Sydney wasn't the irresponsible type. She definitely would not have gotten pregnant unless she was starting a family with a man she loved.

These thoughts saddened and angered him all at once. He was not angry with Sydney for moving on. He understood it, although he was not sure he'd ever accept it. How could a person ever _accept_ that they missed two years of a life they had planned on spending with Sydney Bristow? 

_Enough of this_, he thought, _just knock on the door_. So he did. He waited for a few moments, and soon impatience got the best of him. He turned on his heel, walking down the steps in front of the door.

"Vaughn?"

He recognized her voice immediately, but hesitated to turn around. He closed his eyes, pushing away all emotion he felt, took a deep breath and slowly turned to her. All his efforts to remain calm were futile.

There she stood in the doorway. She was as beautiful as he had remembered, maybe even more so. He assessed that she was six, maybe seven months pregnant. A radiant glow surrounded her face, her eyes bright, her smile genuine. Tears were in her eyes, her bottom lip trembling, but she remained in her spot, not wanting to make a wrong move. He recognized her hesitation, and immediately loved her more for it. She had always cared more about him than herself.

"Syd," he spoke, voice trembling. Tears began to stream down his face. He ignored any rational thought and ran to embrace her. When he took off, she met him and they stood in a tight embrace for what felt like an eternity.

"Vaughn, I can't believe it..." she spoke, looking up at him, "they found a body. God, Vaughn...I'm so sorry," he followed her eyes to her stomach. He shook his head violently.

"Syd, don't apologize for moving on, for having a child...I was dead," he said, looking in here eyes. She turned away from him for a moment, wiping tears from her face. She put her hands on her hips. 

"Vaughn, aren't you angry? I mean, God, you must be angry...I would be...livid," she stated, her voice nearly inaudible. He sighed, leading her to sit down next to him on her front steps.

"I'm angry at the circumstances, at whoever did this to me. I'm not angry at you," he said. She looked at him for a few moments. She seemed to be taking in his face, memorizing every feature as she had done years before. She began to cry again; how could she have forgotten his face already? It had only been two years. He draped an arm around her shoulder as he had done many times before and they sat in silence for a few more moments. She wordlessly stood up, slowly of course. He took her outstretched hand and followed her into the house.

"Would you like something to drink?" she asked, still wiping away tears.

"Yes, that would be great," he started to tell her what he would like, but she nodded her head and traipsed into the kitchen. She knew what he wanted. 

He looked around what was obviously the living room and took a seat on a burgundy couch. He heard sounds of opening cabinets in the kitchen and smiled at the thought of Sydney once again. She was still very much the same...that comforted him. Now, obviously the bulge on her stomach was significantly different, but there were other subtle changes. Her hair seemed darker and it was now shoulder length. She was wearing a different scent, something that smelled more natural than the floral scent that he had previously committed to memory. 

He was snapped out of his second set of observations when he heard a foreign noise, not coming from the kitchen. His CIA instincts immediately kicked in as he stood up to investigate. He followed the racket which consisted of (what sounded like) metal objects being thrown. He came to the door that it was coming from, hesitating a moment before he stepped inside. He opened the door carefully, relieved when it made no sound. He was in the garage. The hood of a car was propped up, and a man stood in front of it, his back to Vaughn. The man was tinkering with something; Vaughn did not like it. The man must have realized he was no longer alone, for he suddenly turned around. Vaughn gasped.

"Sark," he hissed. Springing into action, he flew across the room, grabbing Sark by the neck, slamming his head against a nearby table.

"What do you think you're doing?" he shouted, "I _know_ you were not just sabotaging her car. I will kill you, you..."

"Mr. Vaughn," Sark spoke "I assure you, I was doing nothing of the sort," he managed, gasping for air. Vaughn immediately grew defensive. Not only was the man trying to hurt Sydney; he had the gall to _deny_ it. Vaughn pulled out a gun and pointed it at Sark's head. Sark's eyes widened at the sight. _And where exactly did you get a gun Mr. Vaughn_, he thought.

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't shoot you in the face!" he shouted, shaking the gun in the man's face. 

"Vaughn!" a voice broke into their conversation, one that Vaughn recognized as Sydney's voice. He turned to look at her, his left arm still clinging to Sark's neck. She was in a state of panic, her hands outstretched in front of her body.

"Vaughn, where did you get a gun?" she demanded, "Let him go!" 

_What_, he thought, _Why_?

"Sydney, why? This bastard is the one who took me for two years. He's going to pay," he hissed, turning again to Sark's frightened face.

"Look, Vaughn...I know nothing makes sense right now. I will explain everything to you...right now you need to put down the gun,"

"That's what everyone is saying," he spat out, turning to her again, "Everyone is saying that they'll explain _later_. Well, I want an explanation n_ow_. Why should I put the gun down?"

Sydney hesitated, but her eyes remained desperate. She shared a glance with Sark, who nodded, as much as he could in the tight headlock he was in. She sighed, looking into Vaughn's green eyes.

"Vaughn, Sark...Andrew...is my husband," she spoke in a whisper. 


	4. Revelations

DISCLAIMER: Adrian Lazarey belongs to J.J. Abrams...however, I'm taking creative license and changing his character a bit...

  


He was delusional. The walls were spinning, his head was pounding. Faces blurred together, as did miscellaneous objects around the room. His mind shouted at him as he stumbled out of the room he was in, onto an object that slightly resembled a couch. He just had to be delusional.

That was the only explanation for this insane turn of events.

"Vaughn," a voice said, threatening to snap him out of his trance. But oh, he wasn't coming out yet. Not until he figured this out. Sydney said she was married to Sark. _Sark_. That bastard. He probably took advantage of Syd while she was grieving over...Oh God. She really had moved on. He had been _dead_. This new revelation made that fact all the more real. Suddenly, his own voice became audible.

"Syd, what is going on?" he demanded, looking up to her face, which was beginning to look a little less like a work by Picasso.

"Vaughn, are you alright?"

"Syd, I'm fine. What is going on? You're married to _him_?" he asked, pointing to a disheveled Sark.

"Vaughn...look...I know nothing makes sense right now, but let me get you something to drink, and I promise you, we will explain everything," Sydney said, arms extended toward him.

"Why should I believe a word that lying manipulator says? He was there when Sloane knocked me out Syd...it's the last thing I remember. He took me!" Vaughn shouted, pointing at Sark, who was now standing beside Sydney.

"Vaughn, yes you saw Sark, but he didn't take you! Sloane did, this is all his doing!"

Vaughn stood up at this.

"You mean to tell me that you believe what this guy says? Sydney, he was your enemy for years!" he said, pointing his finger in Sark's face.

"Yes! I believe what he says Vaughn! I love him!" Sydney shouted, but immediately regretted her outburst. Vaughn's eyes filled with tears as he struggled to cope with this information.

She _loved _him. How did this happen? He turned away from them, and sat again on the nearby couch.

"How did this happen?" he asked, his voice becoming calm. Sydney looked to her husband, who nodded, and proceeded to leave the room. Sydney walked over to the couch slowly, and sat next to her former handler cautiously. She hesitated before she began.

"Vaughn, that night that you disappeared, I was taken to the hospital. I was in a coma for two weeks. They didn't think that I was going to live; I had extensive internal injuries. When I came to, the first person I asked to see was you. Weiss was there; he told me that you were missing," she paused for a moment, and Vaughn finally lifted his eyes to her own. He nodded for her to go on.

"When I was released, I focused all my energy on finding you. Two months after your disappearance, I went on a mission and ran into Sark. By this time, I had discovered that Sloane was responsible for Francie's death, for putting Doren in my house. I assumed that Sark has a part in that plan. I attacked him, nearly killed him, I was so blinded by anger. Weiss and I brought him into the CIA, and through questioning, we discovered that he had been involved with Doren, intimately," Sydney paused to take a sip of her iced tea before she continued.

"Through this same line of questioning, we discovered Sark's real identity,"

"Real identity? What are you talking about?" Vaughn interrupted.

"Sark...Andrew...is the son of a former KGB officer, Adrian Lazarey. Lazarey was assassinated by officers of the KGB when they discovered that he was a double agent..."

"For who?" Vaughn's eyes grew wide.

"The CIA, Vaughn. Lazarey was CIA," Sydney said.

"What does that have to do with Sark?" Vaughn asked.

"Andrew Lazarey, the man you know as Sark, was granted immunity by the CIA, when it was discovered that he was in league with my mother, and their mission was to destroy the remnants of the KGB, and Sloane," Sydney said.

"Why Sloane?" Vaughn asked. Sydney smiled.

"My mother always hated that man, even when she was Laura Bristow. She said that he made her skin crawl. She loves my father. She loves me. She vowed to get revenge against the KGB and Sloane," Sydney said. 

"Sure, he's been granted immunity, that's just great," Vaughn scowled.

"Look, I know this is all really strange Vaughn, but it's the truth. You know me. I fought Andrew for years...you know I would not have accepted that he was innocent unless it was absolutely true," Sydney said. Vaughn looked down at his lap for a moment. He had to admit that she was right. _So it must be true_. He sighed.

"How did all this happen then?" he asked, motioning at their surroundings, her bulging stomach, and the silver band on her left hand. Sydney sighed.

"Five months after you were gone, they found a body. The lab ran extensive tests on it, and determined that it was you," she said.

"So you just gave up?" he asked, his voice becoming shaky.

"Vaughn, I loved you. I searched the world for you; but when they had your body, solid evidence that you were gone...I freaked out. I realized that it was over; you were dead," she paused to wipe tears from her face.

"Anyway, after Andrew was granted immunity, he began working for the agency. We used all his old contacts in attempt to bring down Sloane. However, we haven't. Not yet," she spoke, with the determination he recognized so very well. She continued.

"Andrew and I went on missions together. Through those missions, I got to know him. I stopped hating him and learned to respect him. We became friends, and then, after you had been missing for about a year, I realized that I had fallen in love with him," she said, looking into his eyes.

"Vaughn, I know all of this hurts you, and I'm so sorry that I gave up on you. That I gave up on us. But I don't regret moving on with my life. I don't regret forgiving Andrew...and I don't regret loving him," Sydney said, finishing her story at last.

Vaughn remained silent for a few moments, before standing up to look around the room. On an opposite wall stood a bookcase, where assorted pictures sat. Sydney and Sark...Andrew...sitting on a bench in the park, laughing and cuddling. The two of them on their wedding day. Will giving, what Vaughn assumed, was a best man speech. Finally, Sark and Sydney standing in front of their house, Sydney's belly beginning to grow.

It was in this moment, gazing at these pictures, that it hit him. He had been dead. How could he expect Sydney to wait for him? She had moved on to loving him after Danny had died. How was this any different? 

He turned around to her, and watched her for a moment. Her head was propped up on her arm, and her arm was rested upon her knees. Her shoulders shook, though not very noticeably, and he knew she was crying. He stepped over to her, and kneeled down on the ground. He lifted her chin up, forcing her to meet his eyes.

"Syd...I already told you...I understand...you had the right to move on. I just need some time to adjust to all of this. To me, it's like I've been gone for three days. I'm still in love with you,"

"Vaughn..."

"Wait. I'll be alright. You don't need to worry about me. I need to focus on finding out what happened to me, and you need to focus on your...your family. Okay?"

"Vaughn..."

"Okay?" he said rather forcefully.

"Okay. But look, Vaughn, as soon as I have this baby, I'm helping you,"

"Syd..."

"No. Now you wait Michael. I'm helping you find out what happened to you, and that's that. And if you'll let him, Andrew will help you too. I know it's hard to believe, but he's a good man Vaughn. He can help," Sydney said, her eyes pleading with him.

Vaughn sighed. Who was he kidding? He couldn't tell her no two years ago; he certainly wasn't going to now.

"Alright. It's just going to take a while for me to trust him Syd, please understand that,"

"I do Vaughn," she said quietly, and smiled at him. Vaughn looked down at his wrist, noticing how late it was.

"Syd, I'm going to go..."

"You don't have to..."

"I need to. I need to think about all of this."

"Okay. Are you going to go back to work now that you're back?"

"I haven't decided yet. I'll let you know, okay?"

"Okay." 

At this point, they had reached her front door. As he began to walk down the sidewalk that led to the street, she called his name.

"Yeah?" he said, looking back to her. She hesitated.

"I missed you," she said. He smiled at her.

"I know," he said, his eyes sad, and turned to walk to his car.

  


*****

  


Sydney closed the door after watching him pull away, and went back into the kitchen, putting her empty glass into the sink. Andrew sat at the table, and she walked to him slowly, and sat down next to him. He looked at her, eyes filled with concern.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked.

"I will be," she said quietly, "I'm just still in shock."

"I understand sweetheart," he said, stroking her faces, wiping away her tears.

"Andrew, I just can't believe..." she began, but her voice broke.

"I know honey, I know," he said, and he pulled her to a standing position, embracing her tightly. "It will be alright Syd, we're going to find out where he was, and what happened to him."

Sydney looked up at her husband, smiling softly.

"I love you so much...thank you for understanding. If you're uncomfortable with me helping him, I can tell him that I..."

"Don't say another word Bristow. You're helping him," Andrew said. She laughed.

"Old habits die hard Andrew. You're too used to calling me Bristow...It's Lazarey now," she said, smiling. 

"I almost forgot..." he said, smirking, and kissed her forehead.

"Well...let me remind you.." she said, and as she kissed her husband, she almost forgot that Vaughn was alive.

Almost.


End file.
